Pope Defends Church In 154-page Document

OTHER NEWS TO NOTE - THE NATION

October 16, 1998

VATICAN CITY - Sounding a battle cry for his 20th anniversary as pope, John Paul II rallied his church Thursday against assaults on its basic beliefs, saying such attacks have sowed confusion and even despair among Roman Catholics. In the 154-page encyclical, the pope summed up one of the central themes of John Paul's long papacy - that there are unshakable truths and that positions that ``question the certitudes of faith'' must be rejected. The document warned against the temptations posed by some modern schools of philosophy and theology. It did not go into specifics of church teaching for which John Paul has repeatedly demanded fidelity.